PFI: Lowcountry Partnership for Biomedical Innovation

College Of Charleston, Charleston SC

Investigators

Abstract

This Partnerships for Innovation (PFI) project--a Type III (C:A) partnership between College of Charleston, an institution new to the PFI Program (defined as one that has never been a PFI grantee), and University of Louisville, an NSF PFI graduate (0438604)--seeks to create a comprehensive model for commercialization of biomedical innovations by combining the systematic search model developed at the University of Louisville with a team composition model developed at the College of Charleston, which identifies the characteristics of individuals likely to form a winning venture team. The proposal endeavors to catalyze the development of the biomedical cluster by integrating business processes with the scientific knowledge and by enhancing coordination between research and economic agents in the area. The project will produce a pathway for coordination of support for a biomedical innovation economy in an underdeveloped area, the Lowcountry of South Carolina, Charleston, and the surrounding region. Contributing to the broadening of access and impact is that fact that the College of Charleston is primarily an undergraduate institution. It is a liberal arts and sciences Masters only institution, with an undergraduate population of approximately 65% women, which aims to bring science and business experiences to its students. Partners at the inception of the project are Academic Institutions: College of Charleston (SC) (lead institution), University of Louisville (KY); and Medical University of South Carolina; Private Sector Organizations: Charleston Angel Partners (CHAP), InterTech Group, and South Carolina Research Authority; and State and Local Organizations: Charleston Regional Development Alliance, New Carolina, and the City of Charleston, through its Digital Corridor and Innovation Center.